Scotland!

As one might surmise from the picture above, my girl and I are very enthusiastic about our Scottish roots and Scottish culture.  This was her lunch yesterday as we watched the vote for independence unfold.  I bet you can't tell which side we were cheering for, eh?  Hehe.  Anyway, it was a fun lunch to make!  And I have to admit that sheep faces are not as easy as I had thought.  It took me three tries to make one that I was happy with.

In the bento:  Underneath the Saltire flag is a PB and sugar sprinkle sandwich, there are three small Forfar bridies (two are hidden behind the sheep), a couple of Tofurky and cream cheese rolls, a checkered apple, steamed broccoli and cauliflower, a tiny cherry tomato and some mandarin orange slices.

The flag was made from blue egg sheet and provolone cheese.  It was probably the easiest thing I've ever made with egg sheet!  The sheep and his opinion were also cut from provolone, but his face was hand cut with scissors from a sheet of nori.  Lots of lettuce cushions everything and makes sure that the flavors don't mix.

Mummies and Spiders

Oh my goodness, tomorrow is Halloween!  What is your favorite candy?  Skittles are my guilty pleasure.  A-chan is totally ready to go trick or treating.  She wants me to join her in the candy gathering extravaganza and so far doesn't believe that I'm too old to trick or treat.  Since I haven't had a chance to post a lot of Halloween bentos, I'm putting up two at once today.

In the Mummy bento: Rice, a cherry tomato, grapes, sauteed squash, checkered apple, carrot hearts, teriyaki tofu and vegetables.

The Mummies were so much fun to make.  Wrapping and layering the provolone cheese over the nori was pretty cool.  The hearts were cut from apple peel and the line of black sesame seeds were placed meticulously with out kitty cat thief looking on in fascination.  Luckily I have learned some tricks to keep Stripey the kitty thief from stealing broccoli out of the bentos in the morning!

One of the challenges of the new school year is that one of A-chan's schoolmates has a very bad peanut allergy and no peanuts are allowed in their lunches.  Being a mom whose child has food allergies, I am happy to see the school enforcing this.  It does make for some changes in my routine.  I had gotten used to having a peanut butter and jelly sammie as a backup for busy days or morning when I wasn't feeling good.   Different sandwich choices are fun and strange all at once.  Inside these spider sammies is a lovely chopped cheese and mayo mixture.  Unfortunately A-chan doesn't appreciate pimento cheese sandwiches yet, to my chagrin.

In the Spider bento:  Two cheese and mayo sandwich balls, cucumber spider webs, orange slices, strawberries and steamed broccoli.

A-chan's favorite thing about this bento were the spider's huge eyes.  They were cut from provolone cheese and nori.  The spiders' legs were fried spaghetti noodles.

A Birthday Bento

Tomorrow is my little girl's Eighth birthday.   The first week of her life was in the hospital and the second week was in a hotel because I couldn't climb the stairs to get into our house because I had a broken ankle and a c-section!  She was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen.  She still is and I am so very lucky to have her in my life.

Today was pizza day at school so I made her a fruit bento to go with it.  It needed to be simple because I had a huge job ahead of me in order to make her class cupcakes.  Apparently she'd been telling everyone at school that her cupcakes would be 'amazing', lol.  I hope that they lived up to the expectations!

In the bento: Orange slices, kiwi slices, an apple circle with a wobbly 8 cut out, pear chunks and blackberries.

Here is a shot of the school cupcakes.  They were red velvet cupcakes inside jack o'lanterns carved from oranges with almond-butter frosting and chocolate stems.  I made a huge mess of the kitchen making all 36 of them!  The extra special bonus was the 3 liters of fresh squeezed orange juice that came from making the lanterns.

The idea for these came from something I'd seen when trying to find heart healthy Halloween foods for  the Cardiac Rehab program that I'm volunteering for this semester.  The original was a jack'o'lantern fruit cup.  My decision to change it into cupcakes might have inadvertently created the messiest cupcakes known to humanity.

Elephant Twins

This bento started off with the bowl of aluminum foil.  I used a large sheet doubled over and crumpled on the top edge to give it a lot of support.  The tiny cheese ravioli were boiled, drained and added into the foil bowl with layers of garlic tomato sauce and grated parmesan cheese. Then the bowl was put into the oven for 8 minutes as a finishing touch.  The coolest part was not having to get a pan dirty - the foil bowl was the pan!

In the bento: Tiny cheese ravioli bake, steamed broccoli, baby corn, orange slices and chunks of black plum.

The cute little elephants were cut from soy turkey slices using a Wilton cookie cutter.  The blankets on their back were cut from pear peel and tiny bits of baby corn.  Also they have nori eyes and more of the garlic tomato sauce for cheeks.

My cooking motto is: Use what's at hand.  After finding out that the can of tomato puree I thought I had was either a myth or invisible, I grabbed a can of tomato soup to use instead.  With a little cornstarch to thicken it and tons of garlic and basil to make it yummy, I ended up being proud of my unexpected cooking experiment.

Caterpillar

Have you ever typed or written a word and had it look completely wrong even though you're sure you know how to spell it?  That happened with 'Caterpillar' today.  This cute guy was inspired by a caterpillar in the Yum-Yum Bento Box book.  It was just so cute!  Plus, A-chan is obsessed with caterpillars right now.  She has to stop and pet them and save them if they are in danger of being trod upon.

In the bento: Four plain rice balls, fried tofu, grapes, a cherry tomato, checkerboard cucumber slices, a tiny lemon wedge, an orange slice, and baby corn flowers.

For the caterpillar's face I used nori for the eyes and mouth, lemon peel for the nose and gari (pickled ginger) for the cheeks.  White sesame seeds help decorate the eyes and black sesame seeds decorate the body.  The baby corn flowers have cucumber peel leaves and orange peel centers.

I should have remembered to cut the cherry tomato in two in order to avoid potential eye injuries, but I totally forgot!  I'll just have to keep my fingers crossed.

It's Monday

Today is another case of the Monday blahs.  Although I think it was because of the lack of groceries than the Monday.  Whatever the reason, I had no theme and no charaben in mind this morning.  It still has all the important ingredients, like food.  Food is important.  It has carbs and protein, veggies and fruit.  It also has my favorite homemade furikake sprinkled over the rice!  In fact, I'm very tempted to make a clone of this bento for my lunch today.

In the bento:  Rice with tarragon, salt and toasted sesame seed furikake, a silicone container of shredded cheese, halved cherry tomato, baby corn spears, grapes, tiny orange wedges, steamed broccoli and three pieces of soy sauce tofu.

Two Toads Came to Dinner

This week I am exploring the decorative uses of daikon radish.  These fabulous stand-up eyes are thick slices of radish, aren't they cool?  So far A-chan isn't convinced that radishes are food, but one day I will get her to concede.  In the meantime we are both loving the new uses I'm finding for them and I'm enjoying A-chan's leftover radish pickles!

In the bento: A Morningstar Farms Chik Patty sandwich with mayo, cheese, curly lettuce and radish eyes.  There is also half of a cherry tomato, two orange slices and two small pieces of baby corn.

The toad's noses are black sesame seeds.  The mouth and pupils are nori, affixed by small amounts of mayo.  I sacrificed the other half of the tomato to cut peel for the toad's cheeks.  This was one of our rare dinner bentos, meant to be eaten in the car on the way to dance class.  Yum!

Bear with a Bow Tie

Today's bento has several of my favorite Southern staple foods, though not all can make an appearance in a bento.  Gravy, in particular, is not suited for bento lunches.  A-chan's first words upon seeing the bento this morning were, "The bear and the raspberry are going to get squished."  Yes, she has definitely started catching onto my bento packing problems!  Luckily I was able to rearrange things a bit so that neither the bear or the berry got 'squished' when I put the lid on.  It was a near thing, though.

In the bento: A raspberry, a roll, two Morningstar Farms chik nuggets, grapes on a pick, corn on the cob, steamed broccoli, orange slices, a container of black eyed peas and pan-fried potato stars and bear.

Mr. Bear was cut from a slice of raw potato, as were the stars.  They were then pan fried with a tiny bit of olive oil.  Once they cooled I was able to put the nori and cheese facial details, ketchup cheeks and dapper cucumber bow tie on Mr. Bear.  In the background is a container of ketchup to go with the chik nuggets.  Not shown was another container with a little bit of spreadable butter to go on the roll.

Lunchtime Friends

The tiny onigiri cube army is coming!  Run for your lives.  Call the Dr.  Get out the soy sauce!  This morning would have been so much easier if I had remembered to make the onigiri last night.  Alas, I made them this morning instead which made the bento take longer to pack.  And when I had decided on today's menu I hadn't taken into account that it took 12 cubes to fill in the box.  I was thinking 6.  Oh well, what's a Tuesday for if not adventure?

In the bento: 12 cube onigiri minis, corn on the cob, a date, raspberries, orange slices, grapes, veggie and tofu stirfry and cheese flowers.

The stifry has broccoli, carrots, tofu, green peas and baby spinach.  There are two onigiri bears, two doggies and two kitties.  They were formed with the help of an onigiri mould which makes 3 at a time.  Their faces were punched or cut from nori and applied with the help of tweezers.  My favorites are the kitties, of course!

Lazy Monday

After an incredibly athletic weekend of Tae Kwon Do tests Saturday and jungle taming yard work all day Sunday this morning was a good morning to be lazy.  I went for freezer stash food and fruit for a quick and easy bento that was still pretty.  Since I was being lazy I didn't want to mess with decoration and let the bunny pick and sunshine divider perk up the bento for me. 

In the bento: Rice with black sesame seeds, raspberries, cara cara orange slices, purple grapes, steamed broccoli and fried tofu.

The freezer stash was frozen in an individual serving container.  It was sprinkled with water and microwaved for 1 minute before getting put into the bento.  The tofu had already been fried before being frozen.  To reheat the two pieces were cooked in a 350 degree oven for 7 minutes.

A Butterfly Day

Happy Friday! There are butterflies on my brain today.  The weather is so beautiful and there are tons of butterflies around the yard.  And I needed another excuse to use this fabulous butterfly cutter.  I am right now thinking of other reasons to get myself to Michael's so that I can drool over other cutters.  It's possible that I might have an obsession.  Yep.

In the bento: Pasta, eggsheet, frozen strawberries, cucumber slices, orange wedges, plum, and veggie hotdogs.  Not shown: a container of grated parmesan cheese for the pasta and a container of ketchup for the hotdog.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Nice and Simple

One of my bentos, woohoo!  It's not nearly as cute as the ones that I make for A-chan, but it's still delicious.  I love that I look forward to eating lunch.  This one is very simple with only 5 ingredients and took about 7 minutes to make.

In the bento: Rice with pickled ginger shreds and radish sprouts on top, a huge cherry tomato, sugar snap peas, orange slices and Morningstar Farms Chik'n Strips.

The rice was already cooked and in the fridge, it just needed a minute in the microwave to warm it up.  The Chik'n strips were lightly sauteed in a little olive oil and garlic.

Hot Dog Ballerinas

For child-size mouths eating a hot dog in a bun can be a challenge.  Cutting them into hot dog and bun rounds is one of my favorite ways of making it a little easier.  Instead of applying ketchup liberally to the bun like I normally would, there is instead a dipping container.  I gave them cute little faces out of nori but didn't try to make them look like anything in particular.  A-chan dubbed them ballerinas and pointed out how the bun parts looked like raised arms.  I loved it!

In the bento: Vegetarian hot dog and bun rounds, a halved cherry tomato, an orange wedge, blackberries, steamed broccoli, corn on the cob and cheddar cubes on musical picks.

The entire hot dog would not fit into the bento without getting smooshed so the remainder became part of my lunch.

The Nose Knows

Sometimes having a big nose is a big asset, especially for this guy whose nose is so cute!  A-chan asked for an onigiri for lunch today and I was delighted to oblige.  Actually, she first requested fried tofu but was denied and then decided on onigiri.  Moms have to make these tough decisions for the good health and well being of our children.  I told her she would understand in 20 years, but I don't think she believed me.

In the bento: Bunny onigiri, baby carrots, apple slices and a pick of green peas in the main compartment.  The smaller compartment contains steamed broccoli, an apple bunny, a pick with green peas and carrot slices, orange slices.  

The bunny's face is made from soy bologna, nori, and pickled ginger.  

A Funny Bao

One of our favorite things to buy at Super H mart are sweet potato bao.  We buy them frozen and save them for treats and fun bentos.  The outside is a mix of pink and purple and is so soft when they are steamed, just perfection!  Spring is here, the sun is shining, birds are tweeting up a storm outside so today is a perfect day for a little sweet potato treat.

In the bento: Sweet potato bao, steamed broccoli, half a cherry tomato, tofu and edamame on a pick, blueberries and orange slices.

Taking inspiration from Sherimiya's bao creativity, I cut the ears from the top layer of the bao using an exacto knife.  It wasn't as easy as I'd thought it would be!  The eyes, nose and mouth are provolone and nori, the cheeks are soy bologna.  Simple, tasty and fun :)

Singing Friends

Wow ~ this morning was tough!  Spring break was wonderful but the return to reality is just so...realistic.  Today's bento was very simple to make and nice for my poor muddled sleepy brain to figure out because I'd  remembered to plan the night before, yay me!

In the bento:  Three inari zushi, a cherry tomato, two picks with blueberries, kabocha, steamed broccoli, strawberries and orange slices.

In the past I've recommended cooking the kabocha and the inari skins in the same pot because they are both very yummy using the same ingredients.  However, I can't recall if I've said which order to cook them in.  Definitely cook the kabocha first and then add the inari after the kabocha pieces are removed.  This morning's mixture was my favorite flavorings: water, soy sauce, mirin, brown sugar.

The middle inari has cooked kabocha mashed and mixed into the rice.  I think it tasted divine and hope that A-chan thinks the same.

Randomness

I can't believe that it's already time for spring break!  I'm planning what A-chan and I are going to do next week.  In the meantime I'm delving into the world of statistics and physics - a true adventure.  This bento was rather random, a collection of leftover items that I pulled from the fridge without a plan in mind.  It seemed to work out okay, though that might be attributed to the implied theme imparted by the use of Pokemon picks.

In the bento: Two potato and onion pierogies, steamed broccoli, vegetarian hot dog pieces, green peas, nectarine slices, orange wedges, provolone cheese stars and a half slice of corn on the cob.

On the side I managed to photograph the elusive ketchup cup in action.  I rarely remember to put the accessories we use daily into the pictures that I take.  I'm not sure how this one happened.  It is filled not quite to the top with ketchup to dip the hotdog pieces into.

What's with the stuff on my noodles?

Normally I buy grated parmesan.  Sometimes I purchase a block of parmesan and grate it myself.  Shaved parmesan is new.  To me it's exciting.  To A-chan it's a change worthy of gasps and cries of alarm.  "What's that stuff?  That stuff on my noodles?"  There was a noticeable undercurrent of disgust in her quavering voice.  I patiently explained that it was parmesan cheese, just like we normally put on noodles. She wasn't convinced.  We compromised with a 'try it at lunch and see'.

In the bento: Spaghetti noodles, shaved parmesan, nectarine chunks, steamed broccoli, cara cara orange slices, baby corn spears, and a colossal black olive.

I've started getting back into a morning yoga routine. I'm finding that it's a great time to do some prep cooking - these noodles were boiling while I was stretching which makes for great time management!

Puppy Inari

I think that A-chan might be out growing this bento box.  She complained that there wasn't enough food in it!  What am I going to do when I can't use my favorite box any longer?  I'm sure that I will find another favorite, but darn it I love this one.

In the bento: Besides the inari there is a container filled with nectarine chunks, steamed broccoli and cara cara orange wedges.  There are also a couple of provolone cheese flowers.

I absolutely love finding new ways to decorate inari zushi and these two cute little doggies were easy to make!  I simmered three inari skins in water, soy sauce, mirin and brown sugar for 4 minutes, then dried them off and filled two of them with sushi rice.  The third got cut up to make the doggies' ears using my handy dandy food scissors.  The faces were cut from nori and the pupil highlights from provolone cheese.  Voila - puppy inari zushi!  

Friday Onigiri

After all the hearts yesterday I decided to do a bento classic for today and made happy onigiri because it's Friday!  This weekend is going to be pretty busy with A-chan's Taekwondo sparring camp and me going to dance rehearsals for a show in Feb.  I'm making our plans into excuses to make weekend bentos.

In the bento: Two round and happy onigiri, orange slices, a container of blueberries with a pink hedgehog pick, a baby tomato and a bread 'bowl' filled with tofu, carrot and broccoli stirfry.

The onigiri faces were punched out of nori except for the cheeks which were cut from gari.  The pretty bow was painstakingly cut from lemon peel and orange peel using the exacto knife, which was more difficult than I expected.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!